Chapter 731: The Heavens Gave the Sword Supreme Everything, Except...

TL: FoodieMonster007

"Why is that person here?"

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon's surprise at seeing the Flower Sword Supreme was mirrored in her own expression.

"I believe that is the question I should be asking," she retorted.

Since she clearly had not expected to meet him here either, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's gaze naturally shifted to Geom Mugeuk.

"I was planning to leave the sect with the Sword Supreme, Elder, and I wanted to bring you along."

The Blade Demon was taken aback, having never expected to be summoned for such a reason.

"Well, you should've said so beforehand."

"I was worried you wouldn't come. Besides, it could be dangerous if just the two of us went."

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon looked incredulous. "Dangerous for whom? For the jianghu? For this murim?"

As he spoke, he stole a glance at the Flower Sword Supreme, who stood there without a word. With her reacting like that, how could he possibly ask to join them?

"I refuse!" he declared, turning away sharply.

"Ah, then I suppose we have no choice but to go by ourselves," Geom Mugeuk said in a very disappointed tone.

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon's back twitched. How could Geom Mugeuk not understand what was in his heart? That desperate feeling of hurry up and stop me, so I can pretend I have no choice but to follow. If he had truly disliked the situation, he would have already flown away and vanished.

Geom Mugeuk knew better than anyone that he wanted to come along, which was precisely why he had orchestrated this little scene without telling the Flower Sword Supreme in advance. Just as Geom he was about to call out, though, an unexpected person spoke up.

"Let's go together."

To everyone's astonishment, it was the Flower Sword Supreme.

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon spun around, his expression one of pure surprise.

Geom Mugeuk's own surprise was evident as he looked at her, for he had fully expected her to be angry that he had invited the Blade Demon without her permission.

"You don't want to?" she asked.

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon flinched at her question. "It's not that I don't want to."

As if there was nothing more to be said, she turned and began walking toward the carriage.

Geom Mugeuk knew the two of them had been getting along well recently, the proof being that the Blade Demon's flower garden remained perfectly maintained. It was for this reason he had asked him to come.

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon turned to Geom Mugeuk. "Where are we going?"

"Have you heard of the Grave of Swords?"

"It's been noisy these days. Why there?"

The question made it clear the Blade Demon did more than just read his books. He was well aware of the murim's current affairs.

Just then, the Flower Sword Supreme, who had already boarded the carriage, called out to them. "Aren't you coming?"

The two men hurriedly boarded as well.

Geom Mugeuk loaded their luggage and took the driver's seat himself. Awkward or not, he intended to drive the carriage personally to give the other two as much time alone as possible.

"Alright, we're departing!"

It was the first time the three of them had ever left the sect together.

That evening, after letting the horses rest, Geom Mugeuk prepared their camp. He soon had a bonfire crackling and had prepared a resting place for the two Demon Supremes.

Geom Mugeuk's giant leather bag seemed to contain everything. The most space was taken up by plush fur hides he had prepared for the two of them to lie on comfortably, a soft and high-quality leather he had specially obtained for this journey. For their first night, they had dinner with food he had prepared in advance.

After the meal, Geom Mugeuk looked at the Heaven Destroying Dao. "That dao of yours is too conspicuous, Elder." He took a cloth from his bag. "How about we wrap it with this?"

It was an incredibly old cloth he had prepared specifically to make the weapon look shabby.

"I will not wrap my dao in such a rag!"

"That's why I'll wrap it for you."

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon could not remain stubborn. As Geom Mugeuk had said, it was such a great legenday blade that someone might recognize it. He could not cause trouble for them over something so trivial, so in the end, he surrendered the dao with a pretense of having no other choice.

Geom Mugeuk began to wrap the cloth around the Heaven Destroying Dao. "Even if it's frustrating, please bear with it for a little while."

The Flower Sword Supreme chimed in. "The dao will bear it just fine. It's a certain hot-tempered person who won't be able to."

Geom Mugeuk laughed. "The Elder's temper is indeed like fire."

"His nasty temper is the same now as it was then. How can he not change at all?"

Seeing the Flower Sword Supreme's amusement, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon said sullenly, "Look who's talking. If we're talking about bad tempers…"

He was about to say that she had quite a temper herself but stopped when he saw the sharpness of a sword in her eyes.

"…In the end, you won't be able to control your temper and will draw your sword first."

"Me? That's absurd!"

"We can make a bet on it."

"Fine, let's make that bet."

The two stared each other down before turning their gazes to Geom Mugeuk.

"Yes, I'll be the witness for this bet."

Geom Mugeuk preferred to handle things quietly, so it was a good thing if the two of them could be as patient as possible.

"A bet needs stakes. What'll you wager?"

Since neither of them could think of anything on the spot, he decided for them.

"How about granting each other one wish?"

One might have expected them to ask what the other would wish for before agreeing, yet, the two Demon Supremes nodded without a single question.

After the bet was made, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon asked Geom Mugeuk, "You think they're involved in this Grave of Swords affair, don't you?"

The Flower Sword Supreme also waited for his answer. She had suspected this was why he had asked her to come along. There had to be a reason for him to leave the sect again when he had only just returned from the Great Sky Peak.

As expected, she was right.

"I believe it's worth looking into."

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the Flower Sword Supreme exchanged a glance. For the Young Cult Leader to move like this, there had to be a reason. This matter was no longer just the Flower Sword Supreme's personal affair.

"It's also true that I've brought you along to protect us, Elder."

"What strength does an old man have?"

"Old? Among the Demon Supremes, you're the most vigorous, Elder. I think you're the youngest of them all. Your way of thinking is the youngest, too."

He said what he wanted to say to the Flower Sword Supreme on his behalf and planned to keep saying it throughout the journey. His goal was for her to return full of confidence.

"There, it's done."

Geom Mugeuk returned the wrapped dao. Once sheathed in cloth, the Heaven Destroying Dao looked like an ordinary giant blade.

"I hope there will be no need to unwrap that cloth."

I hope there will be no need to use that blade.

Taking the dao, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon lay down. "With someone who brings a storm of blood wherever he goes, how can things go as one wishes?"

The next day, their carriage continued on its journey, its destination constantly changing. The battle for the treasure map was still ongoing, so its owner was in constant flux.

Geom Mugeuk was in no hurry. He believed that if he just followed the information flowing in from the Hidden Moon and the All-Knowing Hall, he would eventually meet the final owner. This would be even more certain if his enemies were behind it, as the entire affair would be a conspiracy designed to draw him out.

Then, one day, the Flower Sword Supreme said something entirely unexpected.

"I'll make dinner tonight."

Geom Mugeuk's eyes widened in shock. "You'll cook for us, Sword Supreme?"

"Why? Don't you trust me?"

"Not at all! What greater honor could there be? I'll boast about this to everyone I meet!"

Geom Mugeuk glanced at the Blood Heaven Blade Demon. It seemed like a situation where he would say something, but he was making a strange expression instead.

The Flower Sword Supreme even did the hunting herself, leaping away and returning a short time later with two rabbits.

"I'll make rabbit porridge."

"Oh, I'm looking forward to it! I've never had rabbit porridge before."

While she prepared the rabbits, Geom Mugeuk washed and trimmed the vegetables and mushrooms she had asked him to get. Even if it was just a knife used for cooking, a sword was a sword. She prepared the ingredients with a truly masterful skill.

"Do you have a pot and seasonings?"

"Of course. Everything is prepared right here."

Geom Mugeuk took the seasonings from his bag and handed them to her.

CHOP CHOP CHOP CHOP!

The way the Sword Supreme sprinkled the seasonings was like a martial arts performance. Her elegant movements raised Geom Mugeuk's expectations to the extreme.

And so, the dinner she made was completed.

"I'll eat well!"

The moment Geom Mugeuk took a bite, his eyes widened. "!"

It's bad. What on earth is this strange taste? Were my expectations too high? No… this is objectively, undeniably bad.

"How is the taste?" the Sword Supreme asked, her voice full of expectation.

Geom Mugeuk forced a smile. "It's delicious! It's the most uh, unique dish I've ever eaten!"

He could not bring himself to say it was the most delicious.

The Sword Supreme smiled. "I've made it for our sword demons before. They all said it was delicious and ate well."

That's because they're your subordinates! There's no subordinate crazy enough to say 'It tastes bad, Sword Supreme!' No, even I, the Young Cult Leader, can't do that.

The Flower Sword Supreme also ate the porridge she had made, her expression suggesting it was not that bad.

Ah! The heavens gave the Sword Supreme everything except normal tastebuds!

Geom Mugeuk stole a glance at the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, who was holding his bowl and drinking from it… no, the amount of porridge in the bowl had not decreased at all.

He plans to secretly get rid of that porridge with his inner qi!

Now he understood the strange expression the man had made when the Sword Supreme announced she would cook.

The Elder knew! He knew what kind of dish would come out!

With a face that said he could not be helped, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon placed a book atop the Heaven Destroying Dao and began to read slowly.

Geom Mugeuk leaned back and looked up at the night sky. "This is nice."

The Flower Sword Supreme was sitting and circulating her qi, her expression gentle, as if she were lost in pleasant thoughts.

At dawn, Geom Mugeuk woke. Beyond the extinguished bonfire, he saw the backs of the Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the Flower Sword Supreme, sitting side by side as they looked up at the dawning sky. The two said nothing, just silently watching the stars. Though they did not speak, it felt as if a thousand silent conversations were passing between them.

Geom Mugeuk lay back down and looked at the stars for a moment before closing his eyes again and falling into a deep sleep.

Geom Mugeuk's party arrived in the vicinity of Tianzi Mountain in Hunan. Rumor had it that the person with the treasure map had been chased and had hidden somewhere on the mountain, causing heroes from all over to gather there.

As they drew closer, the number of martial artists heading up the mountain increased. They traveled alone and in groups, a bustling crowd of all sorts.

Geom Mugeuk left the carriage at a private house at the foot of the mountain and they continued upward with only their luggage.

They did not hurry. Rushing ahead now would only get them swept up in the chaos. Since the All-Knowing Hall and the Hidden Moon were reporting the entire situation, there was no need to rush.

As the three of them were slowly walking up the mountain path, some people shouted from behind.

"Out of the way!"

"Don't get in our way!"

A glance over their shoulders revealed two martial artists with hostile auras, their movement arts carrying them forward at an extraordinary speed. It seemed they would simply knock them over if they got in the way. They were either confident in their skills, possessed a naturally nasty temper, or assumed Geom Mugeuk was no master because he was carrying a large load of luggage.

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon moved to the side of the path, positioning the Flower Sword Supreme on the inside.

Geom Mugeuk smiled at the sight of him worrying that she, of all people, might get hurt. Would the Sword Supreme get hurt even if a hundred of those guys came at her?

The Flower Sword Supreme also looked at Geom Mugeuk with an incredulous expression, as if she felt embarrassed, but a faint smile played on her lips.

One of the two passing martial artists shouted at the Blood Heaven Blade Demon as he passed. "Don't block the way, old man! If I weren't in such a hurry, you'd be dead!"

A vein popped on the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's forehead.

The Flower Sword Supreme whispered from the side, "Surely you're not going to let men like that go?"

At her provocation, his expression relaxed. Soon, words that showed his determination not to lose the bet flowed from his mouth.

"He said he was in a hurry, didn't he?"